Ammunition magazine for use with ordnance



g- 1949- D. w. MOLINS ETAL 2,477,936

AMMUNITION MAGAZINE FOR USE WITH ORDNANCE 7 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Jan. 29, 1946 I/vvekr 8.1.0. oavwra m n. w. MOLINS ETAL 7- Sheets-Sheet 2 Aug. 2, 1949.

AMMUNITION MAGAZINE FOR USE WITH ORDNANCE Filed Jan. 29, 1946 LKT.

Aug. 2, 1949- D. w. MOLlNS ET AL AMMUNITION MAGAZINE FOR USE WIT?! ORDNANCE Filed Jan. 29, 1946 7 Sheets-Sheet 3 Aug. 2, 1949. D. w. MOLINS ETAL AMMUNITION MAGAZINE FOR USE WITH ORDNANCE 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 Filed Jan. 29, 1946 rlvue v- D14). Wave .0 la

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Aug. 2, 1949. D. w. MOLINS ET AL AMMUNITION MAGAZINE FOR USE WITH ORDNANCE Filed Jan. 29, 1946 7 Shee'ts-Sheec 5 INue/v'roR- D44). 4- -0 lab, 3, 4061a CL MW Aug. 2, 1949. D. w. MOLINS ET AL.

AMMUNITION MAGAZINE FOR USE WITH ORDNANCE 7 Sheets-Sheet 6 Filed Jan. 29, 1946 Aug. 2, 1949. D. w. MOLINS ET AL.

AMMUNITION MAGAZINE FOR USE WITH ORDNANCE Filed Jan. 29, 1946 '7 Sheets-Sheet '7 Patented Aug. 2, 1949 umreo STATES rarest or 2,477,936 Pics 2,477,928 v I AMMUNI'fiON MAGAZINE roe USE WiTii ORDNANGE England Application January 29, 19.46; Serial- N. 644,132 In Great Britain October 1'6; 1944 1 invention concerns improvements in or reratifi to ammunition magazines for use with ordnance, which term will be replaced here after by the word guns, and relates more particularly' to a magazine wherein artridges or rounds are arranged in a superimposed pile from the top of which they are removed one at a time and delivered to a position from which they may be fed into the breech of the gun or, in the case or automatic guns, fed into a position suitable for ramming or to any magazine or hopper device with which the automatic gun is equipped.

According to the" invention there is provided an ammunition magazine for use With ordnance comprising a frniework for supporting rounds a superimposed pile, a platform beneath said the and incvabie through the magazine to raise the remaining rounds as" a round is removed froni the top of the pile and means for cont'lo'll irl'g. the nicvements of Said platform to ar rest it as the top round reaches a position from which it may" be removed from the magazine and to" restart platform after such removal. The platform may be supported by endless c'onve'ycrs and the power for operating these may be obtained from an electric motor in which case the" controlling means comprises a switch for starting and stopping the motor, said switch being" operated" by the rounds themselves; for reversing the platform movement may be provided to enable the magazine to be replenished when necessary; 7

The removal of the" top round from the megazine maybe" infected by a press'er device operated manuany'cr' automatically as may' be desired or where the rounds are to be fed into a magazine oi an automatic gun a suitable guide path may he provided in which case the feeding movements of the platform will also efi'ect the re"- mo'val' of the top round;

One wayof'car'rying the invention into effect will be d'eis'crilcied with reference to the accomariymg drawings which show a magazine ior usewith a Q. F. gun. The gun is provided with automatic feeding ramming and firing devices and suitably mounted for anti-aircraft fire but the gun itself forms no part of the present invention.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a diagramshowing thelocation of the magazine on the gun. I

Figure?! is an" end elevation of Figure l.

Figure 3 is a front elevation of the'am'muni tion' maga'zine'and associated parts.

Figure us an end elevation of part of Figure 3,; looking the direction of the arrow 2', the view extending to'the top of the magazine.

Figure 5 is an'end'elevation of the upper and remaining part of Ffi'gureelooking in-the direction ofi the" arrow 3':-

3 claims. (01. 89 -33) z a Figure dis a cross" section of Figure 3 onthfe lindVI-Vlshdwiiig the conveyor guide track.

Figure '1' is a wiring diagram. a Figure 8 is a view of part of the top of Figure" 3', s -twinge pusher device. i Figure 9 is a section on the line IXIX-, Figure 8'. V ,7 Figure 10 isa fragmentary view of Figure 8 showing a guide rail, the view being in the direc tion of the arrow 4. x

Referring first to Figures" 1 and 2', a few" ele merits oif the gun referred are shcym in thin lines. The barrel I is mounted the cradle 2' which is supported by rcamcns- 31in amccnti'ng 4'. On the cradle 2 there arranged a trainework' 5 on which automatic feeding and retrrif' ming devices (not s'h ownl are mounted, these devices being supplied with rennet R by a step: ing magazine 6; Figure 2. rhea-acetate G only of sufiicient size to hold a few"rotnfds when it is desired to are the' gun tor a wager period it is" necessary to provide an au'izih 9, magazine to'supply rounds to the magazine and the present inventive provides a very suitable auitiliar'y magazine for this pmpcse;

Referring now aiscto' Figures 3 to c-ti emeea: zine which is enerally indicated by the refer: ence 50 in Figures 1 and 2 consists of a frame: work havingtwo' substantially parallel channelshapeu menace-1e 1 and IT adapted to receiveand guide the: noises and bases of the rounds; The base of the frarnworkis constituted by another channel-shaped member 8" arranged in the present case as shown in Figures 1 and 3 but the actual shape and disposition of the'base" depends to some" extent on the shape of the rounds rcr which the" magazine intended as these are usually of tapering shape and the taper varies with" different classes and sizes of rounds. Cross members 9 and I0, also of channel-shape are fixed to the side mernber's T and 11 and'the wholeframewoil; is fined to'th'e framework Eby struts such as H and a trunnion extension l2; Figure 2, so that" it moves with the barrel; pivot-F ing on the] trunnions 3 as" the elevation changed: The trunnion axis is marked (3-1 in liiguresi 3' and 4. The forward channel rherh' her" 1' is" shorter than the, rear member I! and the magazine is so located with reference to the axis of the gun barrel that the upper ro'undof the pile in'themagaz'ineet any given time has its axis substantially parallel with the barrel axis. Each c'hannel member is provided with a chain conveyor; comprising sprocket wheels I; and I4 at'tlie'ends of the'menibei" T andsprocket' wheels 15 and It at the ends of the'membe'r' 11,; en'dlesjs" chain" It is mounted on the" wheels 13' and: I 41 and a similar chain" 13" is mounted on the wheels '15 and It. Th'e'chains" are provided wim arneie 20""a'nd" 2F respectively attached to theohain liars? The chairi wme te tightened erally indicated by 22 extends from one channel to the other and is attached at each end to the carrier on the neighbouring chain and it will thus be seen that when the conveyors are driven, the platform will rise and lift the pile of rounds through the magazine. As the angle of the platform changes during the movement, the

right-hand attachment is by a' pivot pin and. the

left-hand attachment by a pin and slot to allow 7 some freedom of movement. The platform consists of two parts, a support 23 extending from one carrier to the other and a support 24 fixed thereto and having its upper surface suitably shaped to agree with the contour of I a round. As the rear member I! is longer than the forward member 7 it will be appreciated that it will be necessary for the rear conveyor chain to travel faster than the forward conveyor chain and this is effected by suitably proportioning the sprocket wheels of the conveyors as'shown in Figure 3. When the arrangement described is set into motion the pile of rounds will rise through the magazine and the uppermost round at any time will have its axis substantially parallel with the barrel axis.

As the operation of a gun, whether an ordinary gun'or an automatic gun, is essentially intermittent, it will be seen that the conveyors must travel intermittently and stop as soon as a round reaches the delivery position from the magazine and start again when the particular round has been removed from said position. To effect this, the conveyors are conveniently driven by means of an electric motor as in the example illustrated but it will be apparent that by suitable mechanism the motion can be obtained from the reciprocation of the gun barrel and associated parts when it is not possible to use a motor. I a

The electric motor 25 is fixed about mid-way of a plate 26 which supports the base member 8 of the magazine and its armature shaft has attached thereto tubular shafts 2'! which project in both directions to gear boxes 28 and 29 in which the lower sprockets l4 and I6 of the chain conveyors are journalled. Within the gear boxes there is arranged gearing for transmitting suitable speeds to the sprockets of the two conveyors and comprising worms 30 driving worm-wheels 3i fixed to the sprockets l4 and I8 respectively.

Assuming then that the platform is at the base of the magazine and the latter is filled with ammunition as in Figure 3 and the circuit is switched on and the gun is fired, the motor starts as hereafter described with reference to Figure '7 and the conveyors raise theplatform and the whole pile of rounds until the top round has moved out of the ends of the channel members 1 and I! to a position from which it can'be delivered by any suitable means to the gun or the magazine thereof as the case may be. As the base of the uppermost round moves towards such position it comes into contact with a pivoted arm 33 which is normally held down by a spring 34 and raises the arm against the spring tension. The arm which is pivoted at 35 on an extension from the magazine 6 is provided with a lug 36 adapted to engage a micro-switch 31 when the arm 33 is raised, which causes the motor to stop. The motor will therefore remain stopped until the raised round has been moved away from the delivery position when of course the spring 34 pulls down the pivoted arm 33 and releases the switch to permit the motor to start again. Thus the feeding rate from the auxiliary magazine depends on the rate at which the gun is fired. The spring 34 may be detached from a stud 38 whereupon the arm 33 may be lifted when it is desired to refill the magazine or may be manipulated for setting and like operations without affecting the switch. The switch 31 is fixed to another arm 43 also pivoted at 35, which is normally held fixed by a spring 44 also'attached to the stud 38. A lug 82 on the arm 33 engages the arm 43 when the arm 33 is raised by hand and a spring 45 connects the two arms so that they maybe lifted as one, whichever is actually held.

Another switch 39 is alsooperated to stop the motor when the platform has reached its highest point in the magazine and this is eifected by an adjustable abutment 40 supported on the rear conveyor chain I9 and adapted to engage a slidable rod 4l to' operate a pivoted lever 42 which presses on the micro-switch 39. The switch 39 is fixed to a bracket 52 which is fixed to a bracket 5| which is in turn fixed tothe channel member l1. When the whole magazine has been emptied it is necessary to return the platform to its lowest position in order that the magazine may be refilled and this is effected bychanging a selector switch 46 which causes the motor to run in the reverse direction and lower the platform. The'switch 46 is mounted on top" of a box 8| which contains switching devices described later with'reference to Figure '7. Another micro-switch 41 is fitted to the base of the magazine and operated by the descending platform througha pivoted arm 48 to stop the motor.

The method of removal of the top round de--' pends on the gun to which the magazine is fitted. In the case of the gun being described it is convenient to arrange a system of curved guides leading to the built-in magazine 6 of the gun so that the removal is eifectedby the platform movements. This is the form illustrated in Figures 3, 5, 8 and 10 where the guides consist of a bent bar 49 pivoted at 53 to part of the framework 5 and fixed at its other end by a hand nut 54 to a guide rail 55 in the magazine, and the arm' 33 already described.

For other guns it may be convenient to push a round over to tlie'bre'ech by hand in the case of a hand-rammed gun or a hand lever may be used to push rounds over to the breech or to a magazine built-in with the gun. The lever can, of course, also be operated. mechanically in timed relationship 'with the firing of the gun.

A special form of pusher for pushing the last round out of the top of'th'e channels 1 and I1 towards the sloping magazine 6 is shown in Figures 8 and 9.

The pushers consist of levers 86 having suitably shaped operative ends and the levers are fixed to a shaft 8| rotatable in the ends of levers 82. The levers 82 are fixed to another shaft 83 journalled in brackets 84 (shown broken in Figure 9) fixed to the rear cross-member 9 and at the left-hand end, Figure 8, the shaft is provided with a hand lever 85. Surrounding the shaft 83 is a strong torsion spring 86 which may be adjusted by a collar 81 and on the shaft there is fixed a catch lever 88. This is shown upright in Figure 8 forclearness but actually its position should be as shown in Figure 9. When the lever 85 is manuallypperated to turn the shaft 83 clockwise as viewed from the left-hand end of Figure 8, the catch lever 88 is held by a ledge 89 on a pawl lever 98 pivoted at ill on the rear cross-member, and pulled anticlockwise against stop I50 by a spring It. The spring 86 is therefore cocked. The device is shown in this condition both in Figures 8 and 9, but as explained above the catch lever 88 is not shown in its true position in Figure 8.

When the part 23 of the platform approaches its top position an abutment 92 fixed to it engages the nose of a lever 93 pivoted at 54 on the inside face of said rear cross-member. Further move ment of the part 23 causes the lever 9.3 to swing on its pivot and a lug 85 thereof pushes the pawl lever 90 against the tension of its spring and eventually trips the catch lever 88 so that the shaft 83 can rotate anticlockwise, as viewed from the left-hand end of Figure 8 under the influence of its spring 86. The pushers 8 therefore swing over, engaging the round substantially in the manner shown in Figure 9 where the pusher is shown in three different positions and finally the round moves in the direction of the arr-ow and into the magazine 6. The pusher movements are controlled by a fixed cam 95, the cam being adjustably attached to a disc 9! fixed to the lefthand bracket 84. The disc is provided to enable the cam to be twisted on its aXis to adjust the actual movement of the pushers. A stud 98 on a lever 99 fixed to the shaft Bl moves in the cam track and rocks the shaft on its axis with a motion depending on the shape of the cam track.

Referring to Figure 7 the motor 25 is operated from a battery 10 the control of the motor current being effected by contactors H and '52 which are themselves controlled by the switches 32, 3?, 39, 46 and 21 as will now be described. It will be seen that the arm of the selector switch 55 may occupy three positions and when it is on the central stud the circuit is dead. In practice the circuit may comprise a main switch but for the present purpose the selector switch may also serve as a main switch. For the rising movement of the platform, the switch arm is moved on to the right-hand stud and the circuit is then made.

Supposing the magazine is filled and the gun fires, the top round which is pressing through the arm 33 on the switch 37 will roll towards the magazine 6 and release the switch from the pressure of said arm and the switch contacts will be closed and complete the circuit through the right-hand contactor 12.

This will cause the contactor bars and It to be raised and thus provide a main circuit from the positive lead from the battery through the bar 15 to the right-hand brush of the motor and from the left-hand brush through contact-or bar 14 to a central tapping 19, through the series field and back to the negative lead of the battery. The shunt field is connected at one end to the same point as the negative of the series held and at the other through the contacts 11 of a relay to the positive lead from the battery.

The motor therefore runs and the rounds rise in the magazine until the top round breaks the switch 31 once more. It will be observed that the coil 18 of the relay is in series with the coil of the contactor l2 and thus the contacts of the relay close each time the contactor operates. The relay is fitted with a slug which ensures slow opening of the contacts, and therefore the shunt field current holds on a little after the armature current is stopped thus providing dynamic braking because the armature is shortcircuited through the contact bars 14 and 16 which are both in the position shown in the diagram when the current through the coil of the contactor l2 ceases. The switch 39 is in series with the switch 31 and as only one can be open at one time, the switch 39 is normally closed. When the last round has left the magazine the switch 31 will close and start the motor and then the switch 3.! will be opened to stop the motor. When it is desired to reverse the motor to move the platform to the bottom of the magazine for refilling the contact arm of the selector switch 46 is moved over to the left-hand stud and the press button switch 32 is operated. The bottom limit switch 2-? is in the closed position and thus there is a circuit through the coil of the contactor H and the relay coil from the positive lead from the battery to the negative lead via the middle line of the selector switch 46. The contactor bars 13 and M rise and the positive lead is thus connected to the left-hand brush of the motor. The current passes through armature and via the right-hand brush and con tactor bars 75 to the tapping l2 and through the series field to the negative of the battery. The motor then runs in the opposite direction until the falling platform breaks the bottom limit switch 6?, dynamic braking occurring in the manner already described.

What we claim as our invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. An ammunition magazine for use with ordnance comprising a framework for supporting rounds in a superimposed pile, a platform beneath said pile, elevators supporting and moving said platform through the magazine to raise the remaining rounds as a round is removed from the top of the pile, an electric motor to drive said elevators, means for controlling the movements of said platform to arrest it as the top round reaches a position from which it may be removed from the magazine and to restart said platform after such removal, said means comprising a switch operated by the moving rounds to stop and start the motor, and means to determine the top limit of movement of the platform, said last named means comprising a further switch and an abutment on one of said elevators to actuate the said further switch.

2. An ammunition magazine as claimed in claim 1 wherein a further switch is provided to determine the bottom limit of movement of the platform, and an abutment on one of said elevators to actuate said switch.

3. An ammunition magazine as claimed in claim 1 comprising a presser device for removing the last round from the top of the magazine, and means operating said presser, said means including a spring which is manually cooked and tripped by the rising platform to remove said last round.

DESMOND WALTER MO-LINS. FELIX FREDERIC RUAU.

REFERENCES CITED The following referenlces are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,400,252 Weed Dec. 13, 1921 2,180,741 Lisov Nov. 21, 1939 2,265,170 Humeston Dec. 9, 1941 2,382,522 Trotter Aug. 4, 1945 

